Russia steps up war on terroir

Russian authorities have bulldozed and burnt a huge pile of food imported from the West — leading to an outcry by anti-poverty campaigners.

Russia announced an import ban on food products from the European Union and the United States last August in response to the sanctions imposed on it because of its actions in Ukraine.

To mark the one-year anniversary of the ban, Russia on Thursday destroyed food that it says was imported in violation of the sanctions. The destruction began in the city of Belgorod, with state television showing a bulldozer tearing into a seven-ton mound of cheese suspected of being from the EU. Bacon, fruit and other foodstuffs were also destroyed.

The federal agencies responsible for the destruction were acting on the orders of President Vladimir Putin, prompting outrage as more than 10 percent of the Russian population lives below the poverty line.

“I don’t understand how a country that lived through horrible famine during the war and the post-revolution years can destroy food products,” Vladimir Soloviev, a pro-Kremlin TV host, wrote on Twitter.

A petition on the website Change.org asking Putin to stop the destruction and to distribute the cheese to vulnerable sections of society had gathered 307,000 signatures by late Friday morning.

The petition asks: “Why should we destroy food we could use to feed war veterans, pensioners, the disabled, families with many children, or people who suffered in natural disasters?”

Many European producers have suffered because of surpluses and dramatic falls in prices as a result of the Russian ban.

On Friday, the European Commission extended measures to help fruit and vegetable growers in Europe until the end of June 2016.

“The significant actions taken to date by the European Union have demonstrated the solidarity of the EU with farmers most affected by the Russian ban,” said Phil Hogan, the European commissioner for agriculture. “These actions also played an important part in mitigating the effects of the ban. Now, with the ban prolonged, we need to continue to provide a safety net in order to give security to producers who continue to face difficulties in relation to the ban.”

Food is not the only sector to suffer from the Russian ban. From August 10, increased checks on Dutch flowers arriving in Russia will be introduced, following claims that they contain parasites.

A further set of bans is under discussion which would restrict the import of some medical items, including x-ray machines, tampons and condoms.